Mistakes Were Made
by Joak Drysso
Summary: All they told him was that he had to do the ceremony with the stupid sheathe with him and it'd work perfectly fine.  He supposed he should have learned to never trust the Germans by now.
1. I never asked for this!

Mistakes Were Made

1: I never asked for this!

"Fight in the fourth Holy Grail War for us," they'd said. "We've got the catalyst to summon the King of Knights," they'd said. "With King Arthur on our side, we can't lose," they'd said.

"It's foolproof," they'd said.

Funny, that.

* * *

><p>Emiya Kiritsugu waved his hand in front of his face, futilely attempting to rid the room of the smoke caused by the success of the summoning ritual. He was curious to see his Servant, the legendary King Arthur. The stories and depictions were so varied (he'd even seen some crackpot espousing the theory that Arthur had actually been a woman; what a joke) that the reality would hopefully be somewhat amusing.<p>

Finally, his Servant began to appear, and alarms instantly started to go off in Kiritsugu's head. The figure was not clothed in the colors of royalty. Where the blue and gold of royal heraldry ought to have been, instead there was red and black. The man's skin was a dark bronze, rather than the white of European ancestry. His hair was stark white, and not the blonde that it ought to have been.

In short, all signs were pointing away from King Arthur. Kiritsugu didn't know how to respond to this. The catalyst had been present and used correctly in the ritual, and yet here was something else entirely.

"Yo." The figure said. "So you're my master, huh?"

Kiritsugu paused, not expecting such a familiar greeting. Yeah, this definitely wasn't Arthur. "I suppose I am. Who are you?"

The figure seemed to start at the voice. It took him a moment to respond, and Kiritsugu's brows furrowed at the hesitation. "Saber, at your service." The figure bowed. "If you want my real name, as much as I'd like to help you, I don't seem to know it myself."

Kiritsugu's eye twitched. "You don't know?" A glance over at Irisviel showed her to be equally confused with this development.

"Can't remember a thing." Saber replied.

"I see." Kiritsugu stood stock still for a moment, before sighing. "Very well then. Make yourself at home in this room. Iri, come. We need to report to the Einzbern."

Irisviel nodded, taking another look at the Servant, who seemed to be regarding Kiritsugu with some measure of apprehension, before following after the new Master as he left the room.

As the door shut behind them, Kiritsugu heard Saber mutter "What the fu-"

A steady pace carried them towards another room, where Kiritsugu kept the single-line telephone that ran to the secluded Einzbern family. "Iri, who in the world is that person? We used Avalon. There shouldn't be anyone else that the Grail network could have selected."

Irisviel shrugged helplessly. "Maybe he's connected to Arthur and Avalon somehow. You know as well as I do how vague and contradictory those legends are."

Kiritsugu's frown deepened. "Get a list of everyone connected to Arthur. We're going to find out sooner rather than later who this man is." As Irisviel nodded, they stepped into the room with the phone. He sat down, and took a moment to calm himself. Then, finally he reached out to the phone and picked it up.

Almost immediately, the phone was answered. "We felt the surge of magic." The voice was distorted, purposely so. "The summoning was successful?"

"About that." Kiritsugu hesitated. "I have summoned Servant Saber, but I do not believe that it is Arthur."

Silence came from the other end of the line. Kiritsugu waited. At long last, the voice came back. "Would you like to try that again?"

"Servant Saber is not King Arthur."

The voice sharpened. "How can it not be King Arthur? We searched _tirelessly_ for Avalon, sent it to you, and now you are informing us that despite using the most obvious catalyst to summon the King of Knights, you failed and instead have summoned…who did you summon exactly?"

Kiritsugu grimaced. "I don't know. The Servant is claiming amnesia."

He reactively pulled the phone away from his ear as the Einzbern contact began to scream. He could only make out bits and pieces of the dialogue, but were he a lesser man his ears might have burned at the language pouring forth from his benefactor's representative.

After roughly thirty seconds, the tirade seemed to die down, and Kiritsugu brought the phone back to his ear. "Are you done yet?"

"I won't be done for years, you pathetic worm. We hired you on the assumption that you could do your job at least half-right, but right from the start you've already ballsed it up."

"That being said," Kiritsugu cut in, "I will continue the operation."

"You're goddamn right you will, and you'll get on your knees and thank us when we spare your miserable life for this gross ineptitude after winning the Grail for us."

"Of course."

"Is there anything _else_ that went wrong that you'd like to report?" The voice snapped.

"Only that even with your voice distorted, it's painfully obvious that it's you, Jubstacheit."

"What the fu-" Kiritsugu hung up.

He looked over at Irisviel, who was in the middle of looking through several books. Her eyes scanned the text with machine-like speed and precision, flipping pages after a mere glance as she tried to hunt down any information.

He watched as she went through volume after volume, cross-checking references and descriptions, hoping to find some lead.

After an hour and some hundred books of Arthurian literature and analysis, Irisviel finally looked up at Kiritsugu and solemnly shook her head. "Nothing. Not even a mention of anyone like this man."

Kiritsugu sighed. "That's fine, Iri. Maybe there's another connection that I haven't thought of yet. Not between him and Arthur as a wielder of Avalon, but between him and Avalon itself." He frowned as Irisviel started, and then shook her head. "What is it?"

"Well, it's a silly thought, but we know that the Grail works outside of time. Logically, then, if the Grail can recall heroic spirits from the past, it should also be able to-"

"Summon them from the future?" Kiritsugu finished. Irisviel nodded. He shook his head. "I don't believe it."

Irisviel shrugged. "It was a silly thought, I told you."

He rose from his seat, and Irisviel rose with him. "Do you think it's worth using a command spell to see if he's telling the truth?"

Irisviel glanced at him, a small smile on her face. "Are you admitting that you can't see through him?"

He winced. "He's got a good poker face."

"So do you."

"I'm not supposed to be playing against my ally, Iri."

"Then maybe you need to show him that you _are_ allies."

Kiritsugu frowned. "I'll take that into consideration."

Happy to have been of some help, Irisviel nodded and skipped ahead toward the room they had left Saber in. The door was ajar, and there was a distinct giggle coming from the room. Kiritsugu raised a brow as Irisviel opened the door. There was his young daughter, playing with Saber, who seemed to be genuinely entertained by the child's antics.

As the door opened, Ilyasviel caught sight of Kiritsugu, and immediately separated from Saber, running over to him. "Daddy!"

He smiled and knelt, scooping her up into his arms before standing. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Saber standing there smirking. He turned a questioning look at the Servant.

And then Saber smiled the biggest shit-eating grin he could and said, "Daddy."

"What the fu-" Irisviel clamped her hand down on Kiritsugu's mouth.

* * *

><p>Saber woke up with a start as the plane touched down. He glanced at the woman next to him, who would probably need to be surgically removed from the window she was staring at. "It's amazing, Saber! I never expected Japan to look anything like this!"<p>

_Japan_, Saber thought. _It feels like it's been some time since I've been here._ He waited as the private plane chartered for them taxied, before the pilot came on to let them know that they could depart at any time. He rose, and exited the plane. Irisviel followed after him, still exuberant.

"Have you ever seen anything like it, Saber?" She seemed so excited, Saber wondered if she even remembered that he had told them about his amnesia.

Either that, or it was a surprisingly subtle attempt at getting him to cop to some memory.

"I couldn't say," he responded, looking around. And then he decided to throw her a bone. "It does invoke a sense of nostalgia though. Maybe my home resembles this place a bit."

She hummed thoughtfully, and then shrugged. "Oh well. I heard from Kiritsugu that Fuyuki is really beautiful year-round, so I want to see everything I can!"

"My lady, you do remember we are here for a specific reason?" Saber restrained the grin that threatened to spread. After spending the time between his summoning and the overtures of the Fourth Holy Grail War making vague plans and discussing potential strategy with Kiritsugu (something of a joke, both men knew, but as a thought exercise there was a purpose to it), spending time simply enjoying being back in his hometown with Irisviel was refreshing. He found it mildly worrisome that he found the company of the man that had shaped his entire life to be so dreary.

Then again, maybe it was something that happened here that turned Kiritsugu into the man that Saber had come to know as a child.

Saber simply sighed, and decided it wasn't worth thinking about right now. He'd have time to see things develop in this war.

He picked up their luggage, and carried it to the car that had been purchased for them. He was about to take the keys when they were snatched up by Irisviel. "Nope. I get to drive, Saber."

Saber blinked. "Haven't you lived on Einzbern territory your entire life? How do you know how to drive?"

Irisviel grinned. "Kiritsugu taught me!"

Saber paused, and then shrugged. "All right." He had never actually driven with Kiritsugu before, but he imagined that the calm older man was a patient and steady-handed soul behind the wheel. Doubtless, he had taught Irisviel well.

By the time they arrived at the Einzbern mansion that they would be staying at for the remainder of the war, Saber had recalled that Kiritsugu had never actually been all that great a teacher, and was determined to never let Irisviel drive him anywhere ever again.

He had never felt so glad that Riding was a Class Skill until then.

He put a shaky hand on the frame of the door and pulled himself out, not letting go until he felt his legs stop trembling. With as much dignity as he could muster after screaming like a child during several of the power slides Irisviel had put the car through and then gingerly stepping back onto terra firma, he stood upright, and went to go unload the luggage.

"That was fun!" Irisviel exclaimed. "We should do that again."

Saber immediately turned to her and held his hand out. "The keys, my lady."

Irisviel paused. "Eh?"

"If I want to live long enough to participate in the Holy Grail War, I can't allow you to drive anymore. The keys, my lady."

She pouted. "You're no fun."

Saber did not back down, keeping his hand where it was. Finally, Irisviel succumbed to his silent pressure and placed the keys in the palm of his hand. "Thank you. From now on, I'll drive."

Irisviel looked him over. "You don't look like a car person."

Saber restrained the urge to tell her that during his time, he had worked on (and, if he were being totally honest, secretly traced) several cars. Bar working on a track as a mechanic, it was hard to be more of a gearhead than he had been.

That, and he'd seen every single episode of the newer Top Gear series ever produced, but that wouldn't have any meaning for another eight years. A moment of silence for Stigs lost before their time. "It's like going back to the stone ages." He muttered to himself.

"What was that?" Irisviel tilted her head.

"Nothing. I…as a function of my class," Saber corrected himself, "I know how to operate any mechanical form of transportation."

"That kind of driving doesn't sound like much fun." Irisviel pointed out. "You make it sound so…clinical."

"My form of driving means that we survive from point A to point B." Saber returned. "I have a duty to myself and my master to keep both of us safe."

"You aren't fun at all." Irisviel sighed, and then turned to the mansion. "Well, let's go greet my husband."

"As you wish." Pocketing the keys, he hefted the luggage, and began his walk to the mansion, trailing behind Irisviel.

As she opened the door, he heard the subtle sound of a gun being cocked. Years of combat experience and instinct completely overrode reason, and he dumped the luggage, grabbing Irisviel with one hand and instantly tracing Bakuya in his other, the white sword moving to intercept a projectile that never came.

Saber stared at Kiritsugu, who stared back at them, pointing a Thompson Contender in their direction. Then his brain finally kicked into gear, and he dropped his arm, allowing Bakuya to fade out of existence. He released Irisviel, and the breath that he had been holding. "Do you always greet guests like that, master?"

"I do if it means I learn something useful." Kiritsugu responded. He pointedly ignored the look on Irisviel's face as she began to understand what had just happened. "We need to discuss strategy."

"Again? It'll do us as much good as it has every time before us." Saber sighed. "And I don't feel like talking to you after you pointed a gun at me just to try and learn something."

"The situation has changed." Kiritsugu said. "Assassin made its move, and Archer destroyed it using some form of attack that involved the use of weapons as projectiles."

_Archer._ Saber's eyes narrowed. Fortunately, Kiritsugu didn't seem to take it as anything other than a reaction to the news, which certainly was surprising for such an early moment in the War, but Saber had a number of other things on his mind.

He had entirely forgotten about Gilgamesh. _That_ fight was not one he was looking forward to.

"All right, we'll discuss strategy." He moved the luggage inside, and then gave Irisviel an apologetic look as he followed Kiritsugu out of the foyer.

* * *

><p>Maya was waiting inside the room, which already had a map of Fuyuki laid out. The Tohsaka household had already been marked, a red pin and a yellow pin, and the Matou household had a red pin as well. A building near the center of the town – a hotel, it looked like – had also been marked with a red pin. Noticing his gaze, Maya gestured. "The yellow pins represent locations of battlefields. Red pins represent confirmed locations of Masters, for when we're ready to move."<p>

"Assaulting a Master's stronghold directly? That's ballsy." Saber paused. "Sorry."

She smiled thinly, one of the few reactions he had managed to provoke out of her. "Well, we've got plans for how to move against Tokiomi and the Matou master, at least." She sighed. "Assuming we can ever find the Matou master."

Saber blinked. "You mean he isn't at the mansion?"

"We assumed he was, but our surveillance has shown nothing. It's not like the Tohsaka household where Tokiomi's presence is patently obvious; we have no idea who the Matou's master is." She frowned. "We also know that Lord El-Melloi is one of the Masters. In any event, the reason we're gathered here is because Kotomine Kirei-" this time Saber managed to control his reaction, "-Assassin's Master, is now removed from the War."

"I wouldn't be so certain of that." Saber said softly.

Maya and Kiritsugu both looked at him, expressions sharpening. It was Kiritsugu who asked. "What do you mean by that? We have video evidence of Assassin being killed by Archer."

Saber frowned, taking a moment to choose his words carefully. "I can't explain it, but if he's Assassin's Master, he has to be smarter than that. There is no way that he simply threw his Servant at Archer's Master's estate with no plan for if he got caught."

Kiritsugu shook his head. "He has exited the Grail War. He is under the protection of the Church now, and that means he cannot move."

Saber scowled at Kiritsugu. "Do you always believe that the rules will be followed to the letter? I thought you were a man of the battlefield."

Now it was Kiritsugu's turn to scowl, but before he could retort, Maya cut in. "You're suggesting that Assassin's death was faked to allow Kotomine to do as he pleases?"

Saber shrugged. "I'm saying that if Masters are supposed to be fighting for the Holy Grail, would you let someone who breaks his toys as soon as he gets them be a competitor?"

His Master's face shifted from scowl to thoughtful frown. "I suppose you have a point. It is never a good idea to underestimate someone like Kotomine. Maya, intensify surveillance of the Church." Maya nodded, and left to go perform her task as ordered. Kiritsugu looked at Saber again. "We need to discuss you and your abilities."

"I told you, I don't know who I am, so I have no idea what I can do." Saber shrugged.

"Ah, but you gave me a hint." Kiritsugu closed his eyes. "You performed magecraft in the entryway. Projection. High-level projection, at that. Unfortunately, there aren't any magicians famous for projection in history, especially connected to Arthur and Avalon. And that sword that you pulled out was Asian in origin."

Saber narrowed his eyes. Kiritsugu was very good. "And your conclusion?"

"As I said, I don't know anything. Nothing about you makes any sense." Kiritsugu sighed.

"Then keep this in mind, Master." Saber allowed his expression to relax, and a small smile to curve his lips up. "If you don't know who I am, and I don't know who I am," and he paused, to make certain his Master was listening before he continued, "then I can be _anyone_."

Kiritsugu looked at Saber, before nodding. "Disinformation."

"If I'm someone different every battle, they'll never know how to approach me."

"Devious." Kiritsugu gave another nod, this time of approval.

"Fitting, for a Master like you." Saber responded.

"Then get ready to put on the performance of a lifetime, Saber."

"I am, my Master."

"So for your first impression, who are you going to be?"

"I'll give you a hint." Saber said as he moved toward the exit. "He's not someone you pursue." He thought the line was clever, but Kiritsugu simply looked confused.

* * *

><p>"I am Lu Bu! Bow down before me!" Saber had no way of knowing that Kiritsugu was facepalming from his vantage point some distance away. He stood across from an elegant-looking man wielding a pair of spears, one red, and one gold. He could tell at a glance both of them were Noble Phantasms, and already had a good idea as to their purpose, though he'd need confirmation first.<p>

"Sorry, I only kneel before my lord." Lancer replied.

"Pity. Well, it was worth a shot." Saber shrugged.

"Quite. Well, would you like to prepare yourself for battle, or are you planning to make it easy for me?" Lancer gestured to the clothes Saber was wearing. Lancer himself wore a tight-fitting battlesuit, but Saber was still wearing the rather immaculate Armani suit that Kiritsugu had provided him.

Damn if Kiritsugu didn't have taste.

"Oh, if you insist." Saber sighed, and with a moment's concentration, the custom-tailored suit disappeared, replaced with his usual red and black armor. Lancer seemed to pause, noting the curious-looking material, but when Saber traced an enormous double-bladed halberd into existence, his attention was diverted to other matters.

"My Noble Phantasm." Saber intoned, fake awe in his voice. "God Force." He smirked. "Like the six arms of Chi You, it has six forms. Like this one. Or, like this one." And then he tore the weapon in half vertically. Now matching Lancer's armament, he mirrored Lancer, shifting his profile slightly and hefting one of the two halberds onto his shoulder, while he hoisted the other one and pointed it at Lancer. "Now then, shall we battle?"

Lancer simply shook his head with amusement. "Now I've seen everything."

"Oh, you haven't seen anything yet." Saber grinned. And then, just like that, he was in motion. Rapid footsteps closed the gap between the Servants, and then Saber was airborne, dodging a thrust from the golden spear. He twisted, trying to avoid the follow-up upward thrust of the red one, and grunted as it impacted against his armor before being turned away.

Lancer had apparently expected the spear to pierce, and seemed surprised to suddenly note the downward arc one of the enormous halberds Saber wielded. He twisted to bring the golden spear in line and caught the blade only a few inches from his face. As Saber landed, he nodded thoughtfully. "Okay, now I know which is which."

He saw Lancer's frown, and shrugged. He melded the two weapons back together, and then began to shift it again, the blades themselves unfolding and then arcing backward to form the curve of a bow; no, an extremely long crossbow was a more apt description for the weapon's new form.

"I hope you can dodge." He said, before God Force's Cannon Force mode unleashed a single short blast.

And then Lancer thrust the red spear, and in an instant the discharge vanished with a burst of displaced wind. As Saber watched, Lancer set the gold spear back on his shoulder. "Color me unimpressed."

Saber raised a brow. "Okay, that didn't go like I thought it would. All right then, let's try this." He angled the Cannon Force at the ground in front of him and fired again. The ground erupted and smoke obscured Saber from vision. He could hear Lancer's startled outburst, but now that he had a moment to himself, he calmly pieced together the construction of his new toys.

Then he let go of the Cannon Force, dismissing it immediately.

When the smoke cleared, he stood wielding identical copies of the red and gold spears his opponent carried. As equal measures of disbelief and anger overwrote the shock on Lancer's face, Saber grinned toothily. "Hey look!" He called to Lancer. "I'm you!"

* * *

><p>From his position, watching over the battle through the scope of his rifle, Kiritsugu raised a brow. He was certainly glad he had been there to <em>see<em> this, because it was at least lending credence to his belief that Saber had absolutely nothing to do with Arthur's legend.

To wield what he claimed was the God Force, the Noble Phantasm of legendary Chinese warrior Lu Bu was one thing, but to be able to seemingly reproduce his opponent's Noble Phantasms so quickly…he had never seen anything like this before. Perhaps he hadn't gotten screwed by not summoning Arthur, as he'd originally thought.

Still, there was only so much that a simple replica could do. He had no idea what Saber was planning to do. The gold spear's ability was still a mystery to him, but the red one seemed capable of dispelling prana, judging by the way he had simply gotten rid of the blast. A strike from the red one would be enough to destroy the projected weapons. If Saber wasn't careful, playing his game would get him pushed back into a corner.

All the more reason for Kiritsugu to focus on his task of hunting down Lancer's Master. "Maya, has Assassin given any indication that it knows we're here?"

"Negative." Maya replied. "Although I don't doubt it knows I'm here now that I'm watching it. Have you located Lancer's Master?"

"I have an idea of where to look, but I can't be worrying about getting jumped by another Servant."

"I'll keep a close eye on him." Maya responded. "For what it's worth, at least."

"Appreciated." Kiritsugu dipped into his jacket and checked to make certain that his Contender was loaded and ready, in case he needed it. "I'm going to move to a different angle."

"Understood. Be careful."

"Affirmative." And then he was on the move, hauling his gear along with him as he moved along the walkways of the series of dockside towers, moving toward the next determined vantage point.

Then he noticed that Lancer was charging, and swore, bringing his gun in line to see what he could do to help Saber.

And then he noticed that his prediction that the red spear would instantly destroy Saber's projections had not come true. "Who the hell _is_ he?"

* * *

><p>Indeed, as Lancer drove Gae Dearg forward, even he expected to see the obviously fake version of his spear to shatter under the effect of the Crimson Rose of Exorcism. He was certainly not expecting Saber to meet the point of Lancer's Gae Dearg with his own, and the surprise only compounded itself when the fake Gae Dearg didn't crumble. "How?"<p>

"It's a mystery to everyone!" Saber called out as he thrust forward, overpowering Lancer and pushing Dearg out of line with his body. He brought Gae Buidhe into play, thrusting the gold spear at Lancer, and forcing the other Servant to parry again with his own. They separated, and Saber alighted atop a tall beam near the water. "You know, the whole prana negation thing Gae Dearg has is some serious bullshit."

Lancer's blood ran cold. "How do you know the name of my weapon?"

Saber hummed. "Not really important." He dropped the two weapons, and they faded into nothingness. Lancer tensed as another weapon formed in the Servant's hands. This time, it was a bow. And shortly after, a black sword, one that swiftly changed its shape, becoming a dark, wicked arrow. As Saber nocked the arrow and raised the bow, he called out. "By the way, I still hope you can dodge."

Lancer felt the sudden coalescence of prana and moved immediately. The instant after he lept, the air he had been standing in was rent asunder with a deafening roar as whatever the hell it was that Saber fired tore through the space he occupied, and slammed into the ground, tearing up the earth and causing an enormous explosion. The wind force caused by the projectile's passing and the explosion buffeted Lancer, and he grunted as he was thrown into and through a nearby warehouse.

He winced as he pushed himself to his feet. "What was that? Why does a Saber have something so ridiculous? What kind of knight is he?"

"Lancer, I do hope you aren't done yet. I've got as many of these as I need!" He heard Saber call. He shook his head, trying to clear the cobwebs from his mind. What kind of monster had Saber's Master summoned? This was, quite frankly, _unfair_.

He made his way back out, and found Saber standing in the same place he was before. However, Saber's attention was directed to the left, and Lancer followed his gaze to the entrance to the warehouse complex where a blonde man in golden armor stood, his hands on his hips, surveying the battlefield with a scowl on his face.

Finally, the golden man's eyes settled on Saber, and he called out in a disgusted voice. "So you're the one."

Saber seemed startled, before calling out. "So you remember me?"

The golden man laughed, cold and arrogant. "Should I? I never notice the ants beneath my feet as I walk across my world."

Saber seemed to relax, and nodded. "Fair enough then."

Lancer shook his head. This was getting weirder by the minute. He pointed Gae Dearg at the golden man. "This is a duel between knights. Do not interfere."

"Oh, don't mind me." The golden man replied. "I'm just here to watch a pair of lowlifes attempt to kill each other."

"Oh blow it out your ass, Gilgamesh." Saber called.

The golden man – Gilgamesh, apparently – looked at him, startled beyond words. "You know my name?"

And then, after a moment of silence, Saber called back. "Oops."


	2. I warned you about Berserkers bro!

Mistakes Were Made

A Fate/Zero fanfic by

Joak Drysso

Disclaimer: Peter King recommends this story because it is interesting and weird. He thinks. Call it a 40% chance.

But it's a legitimate 40%.

2: I warned you about Berserkers bro! I told you dog!

The battlefield was silent as Lancer looked back and forth between Saber and the new man, who was apparently Gilgamesh. He had so many misgivings about staying here any longer. His consternation included, but was not strictly limited to, the fact that Saber seemed to know exactly who Gilgamesh was without the man even needing to announce himself, as well as Saber's rather disturbing mockery of Lancer's abilities, including the disturbing quality of the mock Gae Buidhe and Gae Dearg.

He was beginning to realize exactly how deadly a foe Saber was going to be in the Holy Grail War, and he hoped that his Master was coming to the same conclusion.

They would likely need to align themselves with or against Saber if they wanted to last much longer.

For a long moment, Lancer was the only one moving, his head turning back and forth between Saber and Gilgamesh, who seemed to have entirely forgotten that he existed. And then finally, it was Gilgamesh who broke the silence. "Don't you think it's rude to stand above your superiors?"

Lancer blinked, thrown off by his words. He had expected many things of Gilgamesh. Unabashed arrogance as the man who was two-thirds a god, the man who killed the Bull of Heaven, the man who sought (and according to some, found) eternal youth. What he got was something else entirely.

In his life, Lancer had heard the arrogant speak. The tone of arrogance was very distinct. It was not arrogance that he heard in Gilgamesh's voice. It was confidence. Supreme confidence. As though there was nothing he could ask for that he would not receive, as though nothing were beyond his grasp, not because of some imagined superiority, but simply because _that was how the world worked_.

And unlike the arrogant who were the only ones convinced of their superiority, even Lancer wondered if it might not be true.

His head slowly turned to where Saber stood, still atop the beam. In the dim moonlight, it was hard to read the Servant's expression, but he radiated an interesting mixture of anger and grudging respect. "Well, I'll argue the superior statement, but…" He dropped down, landing easily and strolling toward the other two Servants, allowing the bow and sword-arrow to fade out of existence. "I will stand as your equal."

Gilgamesh raised a brow. "An equal? You presume much."

"Only as much as you."

At this point, Lancer really was beginning to feel like a third wheel, and his pride was starting to sting. "Have you forgotten, Saber, that we were in the middle of a duel?" His speech was clipped, a sign that he was beginning to get irritated.

"Not at all, but now the mood's been ruined. Besides, I think in a moment it won't really matter much whether or not you want a duel."

"What do you mea-" He felt a sudden tug on his consciousness as a Command Spell was used, and then he was in a different location, his body moving automatically, bringing Gae Dearg up to intercept a projectile. "Master?"

"We're under attack." Kayneth hissed. And then to punctuate the statement, a sudden storm of bullets came out of the darkness with a stuttering report. Lancer wove his spears through the air, deflecting them, as he backed up. "We may need to withdraw a little bit early. I appear to have misjudged the quality of Masters in this War."

"Misjudged, my lord?"

"One of these Masters has debased himself by using tools of the modern era. Crude, but I am not adequately prepared to defend myself." Kayneth suddenly swore as one of the bullets ricocheted off Gae Buidhe at an odd angle and buried itself in his left foot. His face screwed up with pain, but sheer force of will pushed it back, and instead he managed snap at Lancer. "Watch what you're doing!"

Lancer grimaced. "I am trying, but it's hard to read the path of the projectiles without much light."

A moment later, the gunfire stopped. Kayneth nodded. "Lancer, we're going to withdraw." When Lancer didn't move, he frowned. "Lancer!"

"Can you feel that?" Lancer said, his voice suddenly soft. A disturbing sensation was working its way up his spine.

After a moment, Kayneth responded. "Yes, I can. Lancer, we really should withdraw." _Before that man starts shooting again._

Before Lancer had a chance to agree with Kayneth, a shrill scream cut through the unsteady silence that had descended on the battlefield. "TOKIOMI!"

* * *

><p>Saber and Gilgamesh, who had returned to an uneasy standoff after Lancer's sudden disappearance, blanched at the scream. "It seems someone else is joining our party." Gilgamesh frowned. "An uninvited guest spoils the atmosphere, don't you agree?"<p>

Saber shrugged. "Sometimes it makes things more interesting." He was, in fact, grateful for the interruption. He had been more than a little concerned that he was going to have to face off against Gilgamesh early, which doubtless would have forced his hand, and he wanted to keep his best tricks hidden as long as he could.

"Still, it seems that this new guest desires something from my Master, so I do hope you'll forgive the interruption." Gilgamesh gave a weary sigh.

Before either of them could do anything, though, the air warped, the prelude to a Servant materializing. And then, as the Servant appeared, Saber gave a weak grunt at the sudden onset of a sharp headache.

It was in his nature when facing enemies to assess them, and especially to look for another weapon to add to his ever-expanding armory. However, when he beheld the new Servant with his blacksmith's eyes, his mind rebelled at what it saw. He couldn't even begin to explain what he was seeing in words; the only thing that came to his mind was that what he was seeing was _wrong_.

Gilgamesh did not spare him a look, instead approaching the Servant. He had barely a moment to react when the new Servant, an enormous hulk of armor cloaked in black _something_ suddenly charged him, howling wildly.

_Berserker_, Saber thought to himself as he willed himself not to close his eyes in order to avoid the pain. _And this evening was going so well._

He watched as Berserker pressured Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh had yet to draw any weapon, and his surprised expression had changed to one of amusement, as though keeping away from the rampaging suit of armor was a game; and in all likelihood, it was.

And then Berserker reached down and grabbed at a pipe that was exposed as a result of Saber's missed Hrunting. Berserker tore the pipe free, and Saber resisted the urge to groan again as _something_ happened to the pipe. His mind, out of habit, tried to analyze what it recognized as a noble phantasm, and he could swear he heard something in his head pop. Eventually, he simply had to look away.

Then his gaze was drawn back when he heard the ringing of metal on metal. He immediately recognized the shimmering air behind Gilgamesh; he had unlocked the Gate. He felt, before he heard or saw, the treasured sword Gram landing by his left foot.

The blade was unnaturally warped.

He looked back to Gilgamesh and Berserker, who had stopped its mad charge. Gilgamesh was obviously surprised that a simple pipe had deflected one of his treasures; Saber had no doubt he would have been incensed to discover that it had been damaged.

Saber grit his teeth, and then forced his attention back on Berserker. The wrongness that surrounded the hulking Servant had spread to the pipe, wrapping it in the same layer of corruption as that of the Servant.

He had to ignore it. Fight past the pain and grasp the reality of the situation.

It was pointless. He could read nothing. Every so often, he thought he could catch a flash of what his mind told him was a noble phantasm – a _true_ phantasm, and not the vulgar falsehood that Berserker currently gripped in its hands – but when he tried to examine it, it slipped out of sight again.

"You have an interesting toy there." Gilgamesh called. "I do wonder how well it will protect you though."

And then he gestured, and steel rained down on Berserker. Really, that should have been the end of it, but if Saber knew one thing from experience, it was that Berserkers were cheaters and hated playing by the rules of sense and probability.

Wielding the pipe in the confident, composed way of a well-practiced fighter, Berserker wove the improvised weapon in patterns, catching ancient treasured, priceless weaponry and batting them aside. Saber moved every so often, noting with amusement that Berserker was attempting to send some of the deflected weaponry his way in a roundabout attack. Whoever this Berserker was, it was not so simple-minded as Heracles had been.

Good information to have.

Eventually, as Gilgamesh realized that the spray-and-pray approach was not working, the tide of steel ebbed and then died. For the brief moment that they lingered in the world before being drawn back into the Gate, the littered weaponry formed a wall between Berserker, Saber, and Gilgamesh.

"I can see that this is getting me nowhere." Gilgamesh sighed theatrically. "Well, since there's no reason for me to go any further than this against some mindless dog, I'll be leaving." He gestured vaguely in Saber's direction. "You can play with him."

"Shouldn't you be cleaning up your own messes?" Saber replied, knowing full well that this situation was quickly becoming grim.

"As if a king would lower himself to cleaning when a servant is around to handle the matter." Gilgamesh waved his hand. "I'll deal with you later; at the very least you'll prove an _interesting_ challenge, rather than an annoying one."

Saber shrugged his shoulders. "Fair enough." Internally, though, he was praying for Kiritsugu to manage something that would pull him out of this situation.

"Don't let Tokiomi's Servant escape!" The shrill voice from earlier called. "Berserker, crush him!"

With a roar, the black Servant charged, flourishing the pipe. It brought the improvised noble phantasm down.

And then it stopped centimeters short of Gilgamesh's head; Berserker was bound tightly by chains extending from multiple entryways in the Gate.

Gilgamesh turned to face Berserker, brushing the pipe away. From where Saber stood, he barely managed to make out what Gilgamesh said to the raging Servant. "I don't appreciate having to call on my friend to handle trash like you. Appreciate the generosity I am showing you now. I will not repeat it. Do _not_ appear before me again; you do not stand any more of a chance than I am willing to give you." And then Gilgamesh pulled back, and his body faded away into the night, the chains slackening and disappearing shortly thereafter.

And now it was just Saber and Berserker.

Saber and a very, very angry Berserker.

Saber, a very, very angry Berserker, and its Master, who was probably not too happy with that previous development.

"Well, if I couldn't get Tokiomi's Servant, I'll settle for getting another one. Berserker, destroy Saber!"

Even before Berserker could move though, Saber had rearmed himself with the bow and summoned Hrunting, nocking the sword-arrow and drawing it back. "Uh-uh. Not letting you get near me." He released the string, and in an immeasurably small fragment of time the weapon cut across the distance between the two Servants.

"Oh, _bullshit_."

Berserker stood, Hrunting clasped between both hands, visor flashing red with malice. The blackness crept into the broken phantasm as it reformed into a sword; Saber blinked as Berserker took possession of Hrunting.

He didn't even know how that was possible.

So instead of thinking about it, he drew on his prana, summoning yet another Hrunting. "All right, try this one." He loosed it, and rolled his eyes as Berserker blocked it with its own sword. "Of course." The sword-arrow ricocheted upward and away, before supernaturally righting itself, angling back at Berserker before flashing in again with every bit as much speed as it originally had. Berserk rotated in an instant, blocking it again.

And then Saber fired a third one.

A fourth.

A fifth.

And then he watched in dull disbelief as Berserker practically danced through the onslaught. He kept his aim very carefully on Berserker, allowing his many arrows to home in repeatedly on their target, and yet Berserker had managed to avoid taking a hit.

And then Berserker caught another Hrunting, before hurling the broken phantasm at another one. The two collided, and shattered with a sudden eruption of force. With two strong slashes, Berserker sent the final two into the surrounding warehouses, causing another pair of enormous explosions and buffeting the area with turbulent winds.

And then Berserker turned to Saber, pointing the corrupted Hrunting at him.

And Saber shook his head. "No. This is dumb. You're dumb. I'm done."

Berserker roared and hurled the sword, but Saber had already faded away, and the sword cut through the air where he stood a scant instant before.

* * *

><p>"Well." Kiritsugu began. He, Maiya, and Saber sat in his car, parked just outside the Einzbern Castle. The ride back had been silent, owing to the rather confused battle that had taken place shortly beforehand.<p>

"Well." Saber echoed.

"Would you like to talk about what just happened?"

"Not particularly."

"Pity. You don't get a choice." Kiritsugu turned to face Saber. "You know more than you're telling me."

Saber stared at Kiritsugu, letting the silence stretch out, before he nodded slowly. "Yes, I am."

"You've been undermining my efforts since the beginning."

Saber reared back. "Are you kidding me? Did you see me nearly kill Lancer after I got bored with him? If not for Gilgamesh-" And then his mouth snapped shut.

"Yes, let's talk about Gilgamesh." Kiritsugu's voice was low and toneless. "You seem very well acquainted with him."

"We've met." Saber responded hesitantly.

Kiritsugu sighed, and then faced forward, allowing his forehead to strike the steering wheel. "Is there any chance of me getting a straight answer from you without using a command spell?"

"Until I have a chance to actually confirm things? No."

"Confirm _what_?"

"I can't tell you until I've confirmed it." Saber shrugged.

"I haven't had an argument this tautological since Ilyasviel asked me to bring her here." Kiritsugu shook his head. "When will you be able to confirm whatever this is?"

"I have no idea."

"You know what you really have no idea about? How close I am to actually using one of these spells to force an answer out of you."

"And you won't, because to do so would crippling so early in the war. You got Lancer's Master to burn one, but that advantage would be lost and you'd be down in comparison to the others. You're not brash enough to throw something so valuable away." Saber responded.

"One day, I am going to pay you back for all of this."

"You'll try, at least."

"I don't try, Saber."

"...I suppose that much is true." Kirei had told him as much, so long ago.

"I'll just bide my time for now, and...oh what now?" At that moment, the door of the mansion opened, and Irisviel jogged outside and toward the car. Kiritsugu opened his door, and Maiya and Saber took that as a cue to exit the car as well. Irisviel stopped a bit short of the group, a hesitant smile on her lips. "Iri, what's the matter?"

"Welcome home. Um, not too long ago we got a call from the family. Whoever it was was quite irate. I couldn't really make out too much of what they said, but apparently the part of the estate that we lived on got blown up somehow?"

Kiritsugu stared for a second, before nodding. "Oh. That makes sense."

"...it does?" Irisviel blinked.

"Yes. When we left, I set a large number of traps for anyone who might think of trying to get their hands on either you or Ilyasviel. That's why I left her with the Einzbern and brought you here myself." Kiritsugu closed the door and began to move toward the mansion. "From the sound of it, someone did exactly what I figured they were doing. And if I had to guess..."

"Kotomine?" Maiya asked.

Kiritsugu shook his head. "Tohsaka, actually. From what we know, he's barricaded himself so far in his manse that attacking him would be a serious inconvenience, to put it lightly, but his wife and daughter continue to live in the main house. To me, it seems like he's baiting someone into trying to get at his family to get to him; if he's using his family like that, it seems quite natural to think he'd use similar tactics against other Masters."

Saber frowned, the mention of Tohsaka and his family sparking a rogue thought. _Daughter? Shouldn't it be daughters?_ And then his mind connected all the dots, and he had to fight to control his reaction. _Well, there's another thing to take care of._

Irisviel, on the other hand, paled at the thought of such mercilessness being leveled at her daughter. "Are you sure Ilyasviel is safe?"

Kiritsugu smiled slightly. "She's as safe as the Einzbern can make her. Tohsaka's arm is not so long that he can pluck her from where she's hiding." He glanced at Saber. "We're not nearly done with our conversation, but it'll have to stop for now. I want a check on all of the arrangements made in the forest."

Saber, glad to have an escape from the conversation, even if only temporarily, nodded. "As you wish, Master." He turned and dashed off into the forest.

* * *

><p>"I've just heard the most intriguing report." Tohsaka Tokiomi spoke in even tones, his eyes tracing a map of Fuyuki marked with six pins. The advantages of having well-connected contacts in the Church and the Tower gave him near-complete knowledge of his adversaries for the game. Only one MasterServant pair escaped his informants: Caster. Tokiomi was not overly concerned; with Gilgamesh at his side, no matter who Caster was or when the Servant decided to appear, he would have no problem handling the nuisance.

"A report?" Kotomine Kirei's voice came back across the link.

"From field operatives. Operatives that I sent to hunt down and secure the vessel of the Holy Grail, and her daughter."

"...I see." Kirei responded. "Were they successful?"

"Well, as it turns out, they never got a chance to try. Another group of individuals with likeminded aims were killed and the wing of the mansion that they invaded completely destroyed by Emiya's handiwork." Tokiomi paused. "A group of individuals who were reportedly working for the Church."

Kirei didn't respond.

"I believe I made it well-known that you were not to act without my permission. This is a delicate performance, Kotomine Kirei. I wish you had not tried to act of your own accord. Although I suppose you did save me having to purchase an entire new unit for operations here in Fuyuki."

"It was not my intention to usurp your position, or endanger your plans." Kirei finally replied. "I simply wished to make certain that the grail vessel was in proper hands for the duration of the war."

_Your hands, no doubt_, Tokiomi thought. "Regardless, what's done is done. The operation was a complete failure. For the time being, we must assume that both the vessel and her daughter are out of reach. Emiya has concealed his vitals quite cleverly, for the moment."

"As I guessed he would."

_Of course you did. Your obsession with the man borders on outright frightening._ "This leaves us with...Lord El-Melloi, his rebellious student, and my dear, dear friend Kariya, plus our enigmatic final Master."

"Short of turning the Clock Tower against El-Melloi, his position is unassailable. He has no weaknesses to speak of; he is utterly consumed by the thought of obtaining the grail, to the point where any external threat is pointless. His student, on the other hand, is living with an elderly couple who believe him to be their grandson. Pressure can be applied through that avenue. As for Matou Kariya..."

"My own family, of course. Nothing would please him more than to take Aoi and Rin from me." Tokiomi snorted. And then took a moment before he continued. "But we also have the option of working him through Sakura."

"Sakura is still family, is she not?"

Tokiomi frowned, looking at the picture of his daughters pinned to the wall. "She bears the name Matou now, doesn't she? So long as Aoi never hears of my involvement, what happens to the child is inconsequential. She has served her purpose, and if she can serve me yet again, so much the better."

"I see."

"Continue your surveillance. Continue searching for Caster. The fewer variables in play, the better chance our plan stands."

"Speaking of variables," Kirei ventured, "what about Emiya Kiritsugu's Servant?"

Tokiomi shrugged, though of course Kirei could not see that. "I see nothing worth discussing. He recognized my Servant; Gilgamesh would have no doubt revealed his own name given half a chance."

"His abilities in the fight against Lancer were quite unusual."

"Quite worthless, if I do say so myself. A Servant, a _Saber_ no less, whose entire gimmick is projection? He may have some martial skill, but it will amount to nothing before Gilgamesh's arsenal."

"...as you say."

_Good boy, listen to your betters._ Tokiomi waved his hand as though brushing the subject aside. "With that, I believe we are at an end for today's discussion. Do remember not to act without consulting me first next time."

"One final question." Kirei cut in. "You mentioned operations in Fuyuki."

"My dear Kotomine," Tokiomi smiled, "you'll find out in good time."

There was a long pause, before Kirei finally responded. "I understand."

"Good. Report back to me when you have discovered Caster." Tokiomi waved his hand again, and this time the connection cut. He sank into his chair, looking over the map of Fuyuki. It would be another twelve hours before his men were back, and daytime was not a time for hunting Servants, so it would be even longer before anything relevant to his interests occurred.

"So we'll all go a-hunting today." He intoned softly.

* * *

><p>Kotomine Kirei sat in a pew of the church, his hands folded under his chin. One of Assassin's personas sat nearby, silent as ever, awaiting an order. Kirei had none to give. There was no change in operations, just a reminder of <em>who<em> exactly as in charge. He did feel mildly embarrassed for not going through Tokiomi; the idea of the operation being redundant annoyed him beyond a simple failure. There was no value in the lost lives of those men; he didn't particularly care about the lost life, but they hadn't accomplished anything beyond confirming that Kiritsugu was a genius. Which was something he'd known for some time now.

How many steps ahead was Kiritsugu in the war? He was now impervious to anything but a frontal assault by any reckoning. Unless he slipped up in the field and left an opening at least, but acting on hope was never something that Kirei did.

Kirei felt his body shiver with anticipation. A nemesis worth his while. Someone who could stand toe to toe with Kirei for all the small cruelties that the priest could dish out. Someone whose mind worked on the same wavelengths as his own. His palms were sweaty, and a tentative smile crossed his lips.

"Kirei?" He looked up, and saw his father looking at him. "What did Lord Tohsaka want?"

"It seems that our mission was redundant and a failure." Kirei replied. "He was not happy that we moved without clearing it with him."

Kotomine Risei sighed. "All we wanted to do was ensure that the grail could be summoned on our terms."

"I believe he has doubts of our loyalty. He seems a bit stretched thin as of late."

"We will do all we can to assure him of our loyalty then. Finding and reporting Caster's location would be an excellent start."

"Agreed." Kirei turned to Assassin. "Have you noticed any pattern in the killings in Fuyuki?"

"I've examined it through several Facets," the Command Facet responded. "I have narrowed it down to a number of small neighborhoods. I have Facets investigating each. Infiltration is currently nearing the first target, and the others are not far behind. By noon tomorrow at the latest, I'll have confirmation."

"Didn't you use Infiltration setting up the ruse for your death?" Risei asked.

"Of course not. Using one of my primary Facets for a suicide mission would be a waste of resources. Indoctrination was the Facet that died to Archer. A useful Facet, to be sure, but not exactly necessary under these restrictions. As you ordered from the beginning, I have kept Facets Infiltration, Capture, and Torture at a safe distance from serious engagements."

"Good work." Kirei nodded. "Alert me as soon as you have confirmation."

"Understood, Master." Command Facet closed its eyes and entered communion.

Risei stayed a moment, seeming to want to say something, before excusing himself. Kirei resumed his original position. _Soon, Kiritsugu. Soon._

* * *

><p>Saber had long ago finished his perimeter check. The forest was rigged against all manners of intruder. He had to hand it to Kiritsugu: the man was incredibly imaginative when it came to multi-tier traps designed to work against a broad spectrum of enemies. Then again, he couldn't expect much less. Everything he had heard about his foster father suggested Kiritsugu was nothing if not thorough.<p>

He was currently ghosting through late-night Fuyuki, revisiting familiar sites. There were two places he _had_ to visit. The first was the Matou mansion. He stopped a fair distance off, feeling the presence of the boundary. Even without being corporeal, the second he crossed that threshold Zouken would know someone was coming.

Just the memory of the old man was enough to make Saber sneer. He'd get his. The hatred Saber held for Matou Zouken was, at minimum, some three decades old, and possibly immeasurably older given the odd way time worked when a Counter Guardian was involved.

But he knew when to pick his fights. Most of the time, at least. And he was not in any way ready to make an assault on the Matou stronghold.

All he could do was pray that Sakura was all right. It left a bitter taste in his mouth. It was the same helplessness he'd felt all those years earlier. Even with all the power he held at his fingertips, he still couldn't do the impossible.

So he turned his heart to stone and turned away from the mansion. He still had one more place to go.

The second was the scene of the fire. Or well, it would be. At the moment it was completely fine. He saw a row of houses. He wondered which house was his. He moved toward them, but stopped. He could feel the discomfort in his chest. Even if this was his objective, the reality was still somewhat unsettling.

Perhaps he would wait a day or two. Get used to the idea. And then he could go ahead with it.

He wasn't too pressed for time. Even a week was more than enough time.

* * *

><p>Kayneth hissed in pain as Sola-Ui tightened the bandage wrapping his foot. "Careful, damn you!"<p>

She shot a caustic look at him, and then set the bandage, before backing away. "That's the best I can do. You're being very stubborn about not going to the hospital."

"As if I could afford a hospital visit right now." Kayneth rolled his eyes. "The grail war isn't going to go on hiatus because I got shot in the foot. If I had a healer here..."

"Excuse me for not being capable of doing every single thing." Sola-Ui snapped. "You shouldn't have even been shot, hiding back like the coward you are."

"_Enough._" Lancer's voice, cold and crisp, cut the tension between the two. Sola-Ui blanched. "Our opponent, as you can tell, is using rather unorthodox methods in combat. Lord El-Melloi could not have predicted that he would be facing someone so well-armed."

"I...well..." Her voice fell off.

Kayneth sighed, rubbing at his temples. "It is true that I failed to anticipate that the infamous Magus Killer would be working in such close coordination with his Servant." He ignored the surprised look Sola-Ui gave him at his admission of failure. "That being said, now we have a better grasp on Saber and his Master." He looked at Lancer. "I'd like to hear your conclusions."

"I have no idea who he was, but he was toying with me. That much was completely obvious. Even a moment slower and I'd have been killed by whatever that arrow was. And the other servants that appeared...I worry that I am somewhat outclassed." Lancer grit his teeth. "As much as it pains me to say, our best bet is to align ourselves with or against Saber."

Sola-Ui snorted, but then frowned when Kayneth nodded. "I agree. It seems like the best bet is to align ourselves against Saber, but our options are...limited in that regard."

"Why not align with Saber?" Lancer looked at Kayneth. "If the objective is to survive to the end of the war, he seems as good a bet as any."

"At this point," Kayneth growled, "I'll take the first offer I get. I don't want to get knocked out of the competition this early."

"Well, we still don't know about Caster and Rider, right?" Sola-Ui interrupted. "What if we ally with them?"

"Ally with Caster?" Kayneth had the grace to look offended. "It's rather obvious that Caster and its Master are behind the recent rash of murders. If we align ourselves with Caster, then when the lunatic inevitably goes out of control, we become a target as well. Not to mention that the idea of aligning with a murderer is offensive in and of itself."

Sola-Ui flushed with anger, but before she could say anything Kayneth continued. "As for Rider, though I may be in dire straits, I am _not_ going to apologize, nor is Waver Velvet going to retract his own beliefs. This is the battleground we have been given for that particular argument. No, our options are between Saber, Archer, and Berserker."

"Saber and Archer," Lancer corrected. "The feeling I got from Berserker...I don't want to be anywhere near that."

"You will endure what you have to." Kayneth responded sharply. "We don't have the luxury of choice." Lancer looked hesitant, but nodded. "For now, we will fortify our position here and wait for the other masters to move. I dislike being passive, but right now we lack the option of being aggressive."

"What do you know about this Magus Killer?" Sola-Ui asked. Kayneth looked at her in surprise. "If you expect them to come here, you need to be prepared. Your gunshot wound suggests he doesn't play by your rules, so you need to think like he does."

Kayneth frowned thoughtfully. "You make a good point. But I don't know enough about modern technology to know what he would use. Something to take out the entire floor, I suppose, to make sure that there was nowhere for me..." He trailed off. "Sola-Ui, I do believe you've just saved me a good deal of inconvenience." He looked at her, and for once there was none of the disdain and irritation that tinted his dealings with her since the grail war had begun. "Thank you."

Apparently caught off-guard by his expression, she took a moment to reply. "Of course. You are my fiancé after all."

"Well then." Kayneth rose, wincing as he put weight onto his wounded foot. "Time to get to work."

* * *

><p>In a neighborhood a few streets south of Fuyuki's neighborhood, Assassination Facet stole into a home with customary stealth. Its eyes traced the contours of the home. It had felt something strange about the building after laying eyes on it. As the Facet snuck about the house's first floor, it quickly came to a realization: the interior of this building was too small.<p>

Something was very wrong.

Narrowing its eyes, the Facet began to look for the obvious tricks. Practiced hands glided over the wooden walls. Assassination Facet could tell with a touch where the hollows were, and very quickly it was beginning to doubt that it was something as simple as a hidden entryway. It continued around the room until suddenly its fingers dipped _into_ the wall. The Facet stared, fascinated, before realizing that this may have been what it was looking for.

It pressed a finger in again, and the wall to the left rippled slightly. It nodded. Not a hidden entryway at all; an illusion. It would need to be careful of not being detected, having taken a risk already in confirming what it had seen before.

At least that was the thought that went through the Facet's mind before the wall rippled again, tens of shadowy black hands shooting out and snaring the Facet.

And then a head emerged from the wall. The face, a bizarre pseudo-human looking _thing_ with too-big eyes placed too far apart, split into a wicked grin. "My oh my. What do we have here?"

The illusionary wall dropped, unneeded for the moment, and Assassination Facet, in its final moments of existence, was able to send back what it saw.


End file.
